Device for displaying advertisements.



No. 676,235. Patented June II, 1901;

W. J. JACKSON. DEVICE FOR DISPLAYING ADVERTISEMENTS. (Application filedDec. 2, 1899.) (No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM J. JACKSON, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

DEVICE FOR DISPLAYING ADVERTISEMENTS.

SPEGIFIGA'IIQN forming part of Letters Patent No. 676,235, dated June11, 1901.

Application filed December 2,1899. Serial No. 738.968. (No model.)

To aIZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM J. J AOKSON,

a subject of the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at thecity and county of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania,

have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices forDisplaying Advertisements, of which the following is a full, clear, andexact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,ofwhich Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section. Fig. 2 is a planView, also partially in section, and the top part or roof of the framehaving been removed. Fig. 3 is a detail, en-

larged and broken away, showing in elevation the means for operating thedevices for stopping the prisms at the proper positions. Fig. 4c is anenlarged section as on line a; 00, Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectionas on line y y, Fig. 2, showing the devices for stopping the prisms atthe proper positions.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved changeable deviceor apparatus for displaying advertisements; and the invention consists,essentially, in its broader form of a series of equilateral triangularprisms adapted to receive advertisements on the sides thereof andjournaled in a suitable frame or support and arranged with relation toeach other in a manner that by suitablyrotating the said prisms sidesthereof may be brought to occupy substantially the same plane, and thusto present a practically-continuous plane surface, as hereinafter fullydescribed.

The invention relates also to means for effecting the simultaneousrotation of the said prisms, also to means for maintaining the same in acertain definite relation to each other when suitably rotatedsimultaneously, whereby corresponding sides thereof may with certaintybe brought to occupy substantially the same plane, and also to means forarresting the rotation of the prisms when such sides thereof havearrived in position to occupy such plane, all'as hereinafter set forth.

I have shown in the accompanying drawseries of the aforesaid prisms, oneon each side of the framework, in order to display advertisements topersons on each side of the street or road.

Referring to the said drawings, 1 designates each of a seriesfour inthis instance of equilateral triangular prisms having end journals 2,that are supported in bearings of the frame 3, which latter rests uponsuitable supports 4, rising from the axles of Wheels 5. As will be seenupon referring to Fig. 2, the journals of the several prisms of a seriesare in the same vertical plane and concentric with the major axesthereof, respectively, and the prisms being of the same size thedistance apart of the centers of the journals is slightly in excess ofthe length of a side of a prism. Thus when the prisms are rotated tobring a side, as 1, of each prism parallel with a line connecting thecenters of the prisms the said several sides will be in the same plane,and so will present a practicallycontinuous plane surface to theobserver, as seen in Figs. 1 and 2. If now the prisms be suitablyrotated, another side, as l or 1 of each prism may be brought to occupythe position vacated by the first sides 1, and so on in continuoussuccession.

In order to enable the series of prisms to be rotated simultaneously andto always maintain them in the proper relative position, I connect thesame by a common bar 6 in a manner that by reciprocating the latter allthe prisms of a series will be rotated at the same time and to the sameextent. The particular means I have used for thus connecting the bar 6and the prisms consists in providing each of the journals 2 with acrank-arm 7, to the free end of which the said bar 6 is pivoted, asclearly shown in the drawings. There being in the present instance twosets of the prisms and two bars and two sets of the crank-arms, Iconnectthe ends of said bars by a cross-piece 8,as seen in Fig. 2. Thus byreciprocating the latter to and fro the prisms of each of the two serieswill be rotated simultaneously to occupy the desired position.Althoughnot absolutelynecessary, I prefer to use similar bars andcrank-arms on the lower ends of the prisms, as seen in Fig. 1.

In order to enable the required reciprocations of t co ne i g- 6 t beonveniently effected, I pivotally connect the crosspiece 8 to acrank-arm 9 upon the end of a vertical shaft 10, that is journaled in apart of the frame 3. arm 11, that is freely mounted and thus rotatablethereon. This arm has at its free end a spring-controlled pawl 12, thatis adapted to engage a tooth of a ratchet-wheel13, fixed upon the shaft10. A rod 14 connects the arm 11 witha vertical bar 15, whose lower endis pivoted to the front part of the frame and extends up through a slot16 in the latter, as seen clearly in Fig. 1. A spring 17, F g-1, servesto maintain the bar 15 and adjuncts normally in the retracted position.

-""Having thus described the construction of my invention, with theexception of a certain device 'to be'hereinafter described that Iprefertofuse for arresting't'he rotation of the prisms at the propertime, I shall now proceed to explain the modeof operation, as followsAssuming that the parts have been brought to occupy the relativepositions shown in the drawings, in which one side 1 ofeach of theprisms faces outwardly and those sides are in line that is, in the sameplan'e displaying an advertisement thereon''s' i ch,"for example, asillustrated in Fig.

l i'f itbe now desired to display advertiseme'nts that may be'upon othersides of the pri'sms,'as'1 the operator or driver of the vehicle uponwhich the device is mounted, sitting in the seat S, places his foot uponthe outwardly bent end 15 of the bar 15 and pressing forward the latterdraws forward the rpd 14. This swings the arm 11, and the pawl 12,beingengaged'withthe ratchet-wheel 13,

turns the shaft 10, and thus obviously effects the simultaneous rotationof the series of prisms in the direction of the arrows in Fig.

2. When the sides,-as 1 of. the prisms have plan e'*'the bar '15 isreleased and thereupon isretract'ed by the aforesaid spring 17. In

this way the remaining sides 1 of the prisms may also be brought aroundto the desired position, and so on continuously. It isdesi'rable,however, that means be employed to arrest the rotation of the prisms atthe mo ment that the sides thereof to be displayed havearrived in thesame plane. While various stop devices to this end may be used, I

have shown in the accompanying drawings a construction that I havedevised and which Ihave found to operate satisfactorily. This is "asfollows: Extending adjacent to the 111- neredges'of the prisms, in thepresent in stance, where there are two seriesof prisms, extendingbetween the two series, is a shaft 1-8;that is journaled in bearings offront and rear standards 19, rising from the bottom of the frame. Atsuitable intervals apart along lar studs on each side of the shaftin thepres- This shaft also carries an ent instance, owing to the use of twosets or series of the prisms. By rotating the said shaft a quarter-turn,or thereabout, the studs 20 may be caused to stand horizontally, as seenin Figs. 2 and 5, or to stand vertically, as indicated by dotted linesin Fig. 5. It will be obvious that when the studs are in thefirstmentioned position the prisms are stopped against them, as in Fig.2-; but when the studs are brought into the other or vertical positionthey are out of the path of rotation of the prisms. When it. is desiredto rotate the latter, the operator first turns shaft 18 to bring thestuds in the vertical position.' He then rotates the prisms,which arethen free to turn; but before they have reached the desired position orpoint of 'alinement he tu rnsthe shaft 18 to bring the studs 20,horizontally, and (the location of the latter being designed to thatend) when the sides of the prisms to be displayed have come into saidalinement the inner edges of said prisms stop against the studs 20.

In order that the shaft 18 may be conveniently worked by the operator ordriver mounted on the seat S, I mounton the forward end of said shaft agear 21, whose teeth engage those of a gear 22 on a rotatable shaft 23,on

the outer end of which is a crank-arm 24:, to

Y have the prisms of the same dimensions, this is not absolutelynecessary.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent 1. In a device of the class described, the combinationwith a'seriesof rotatable prisms mounted in a suitable support andarranged in such relation to each other that the sides thereof will liein the same plane, of means i for rotating said prisms, a shaft arrangedadjacent'to the inner edges of the prisms, studs carried by said shaftand adapted to lie inthe path of rotation of the prisms when the shaftis suitably operated, whereby the prisms are adapted to contact withsaid studs for limiting the movement of the prisms, and meansforoperating said shaft.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination with a series ofrotatable prisms mounted in a suitable support and arranged insuchrelation toeach other that the sides thereof will'lie in the sameplane, of means the said shaft are studs 20, there being simiforro'tating' said prisms, a shaft arranged adjacent to the inner edgesof the prisms, studs carried by said shaft and adapted to liein the pathof rotation of the prisms when said shaft is suitably operated, wherebythe prisms are adapted to contact with said studs for limiting themovement of the prisms, a second shaftsuitably geared to the shaftcarrying the studs for operating the latter, and means for operatingsaid second shaft.

3. In a device of the class described, the combination with a series ofrotatable prisms mounted in a suitable support and arranged in suchrelation to each other that the sides thereof will occupy the sameplane, of a bar common to all of said prisms and suitably connectedthereto, a shaft journaled in said support and suitably connected tosaid bar, a ratchet-Wheel carried by said shaft, an arm loosely mountedupon said shaft, a pawl carried by said arm and adapted to engage saidratchet-Wheel for rotating the latter, means for operating said arm, asecond shaft arranged adjacent to the inner edges of the prisms, studscarried by said second shaft and adapted to lie in the path of rotationof the prisms when said second shaftis suitably operated, whereby theprisms are adapted to contact with said studs for limiting the movementof the prisms, and means for operating 4:. In a device of the classdescribed, the combination with a plurality of rotatable prisms arrangedin parallel series, the prisms of each series being in such relation toeach other that their sides will occupy the same plane, of a bar commonto the prisms of each series and suitably connected thereto, atransverse bar connecting said bars, a shaft suitably connected to saidtransverse bar, whereby the movement of said shaft is transmitted to theprisms for rotating the same, a ratchetwheel carried by said shaft, anarm loosely mounted upon said shaft, a pawl carried by said arm andadapted to engage said ratchetwheel for rotating the same, means foroperating said arm, and means for arresting the rotation of the prismsat the required predetermined times.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto af-' fixed my signature this 6thday of November,

' WILLIAM J. JACKSON.

Witnesses:

W'ALTER O. PUsEY, JOSHUA PUsEY.

